Chapter 37

The town wasn't very far from Konoha. At Hashirama's pace, he could get there in less than a day. An ordinary person traveling by cart, with some food and water packed, would take no more than five days, even at a leisurely pace.

With a lead to follow, his mind settled a little. This time, with no one tracking them, Hashirama took Madara's condition into account and hired a cart. Along the way, he looked after Madara, admired the scenery, and took care of a few unlucky bandits who happened to cross their path. By the afternoon of the third day, they arrived safely on the outskirts of Konoha. Under the driver's reverent gaze, Hashirama climbed down with Madara in his arms.

Konoha had only recently been founded, and its defenses against outsiders were tight. Everyone entering or leaving was carefully screened, and carts were strictly monitored. Hashirama knew his face would cause trouble, and his identity was unclear, so he had the driver stop at the outskirts. He would enter on his own, using... well, a rather unusual method.

The guards at the gate were all elite jonin, but they were nowhere near strong enough to cause him trouble. He slipped into Konoha, easily evaded the watchful eyes within, and found a high spot that was easy to hide. Using the uneven rock face for footholds, he climbed up.

From the high ground, he faced a huge rock wall in the distance. It bore faint signs of carving, as though someone meant to sculpt figures into it. Below, Konoha sprawled beneath a canopy of lush trees, its layout shaped like a gunbai, a symbol of the Senju and Uchiha clans' contributions to the village's founding. The evening glow spread a hazy light across the village.

The mild breeze stirred his long hair as Hashirama calmly surveyed Konoha's layout. If the Senju Hashirama of this world really was as much like him as he'd deduced, where would he work?

A cold, oppressive atmosphere had hung over the Uchiha estate for three days.

For three days running, Lord Madara—no, the clan head—had been inexplicably irritable and behaving strangely. Every Uchiha was on edge, flocking to the clan mission office or Konoha's mission office to volunteer for missions. Any mission would do, as long as it got them out of the Uchiha estate!

They could run, but the elders couldn't.

The air in the clan council chamber was utterly still. The man at the head of the table leaned back in his chair, casually flipping through the files that had just arrived. His long hair, loose that morning, was now tied back with a black ribbon. Not a trace of emotion showed on his handsome face.

The spacious chamber held only the rustle of paper. No one dared speak first. Over the past three days, the elders had all noticed the pattern: the clan head in the morning was more or less the same as before, only a little more irritable. The clan head in the afternoon was the truly terrifying one...

Could he have a split personality? This had never happened before. Or was the clan head under too much pressure, and had he finally—gone insane?!

The thought plunged everyone into despair. Even a deranged Uchiha Madara was still an elite shinobi, still the head of the Uchiha Clan. They could only brace themselves to be tormented...

"Uchiha Sahara. Starting tomorrow, you're no longer the Second Elder," Madara said flatly as he closed the file.

Uchiha Sahara froze, then suppressed his anger and said, "Even as clan head, you can't remove an elder without cause!"

"How can you say there's no cause?" Madara tapped his chin with one finger and said nonchalantly, "I'm doing you a kindness. You're getting on in years, Sahara, so I'm letting you retire." That was a blatant lie. Uchiha Sahara was only in his forties, while the oldest elder was already in his sixties or seventies.

"You don't have the authority!"

Madara raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Why don't you explain?"

"The clan rules state clearly that the clan head cannot dismiss an elder without special cause!"

"Trying to bargain with me, the clan head? Heh." Madara tilted his chin with a faint laugh. "Even if you're dead, I can still replace you."

It was an outright threat.

Uchiha Sahara remembered the kunai that had grazed past his head three nights ago. Cold sweat poured down his face as he finally realized what he was doing. He looked around the chamber, but not one elder spoke up for him. He had no choice but to swallow the roar that had nearly burst from his throat and return to his seat, fuming.

Madara paid him little mind and turned to ask, "Are there any descendants of Uchiha Tai left?"

The Uchiha elders exchanged glances. The name was unfamiliar. After all, there were several hundred people in the clan; they couldn't remember every single one. Madara narrowed his eyes in displeasure at their reaction.

In this world, the First Elder had also been Uchiha Cang. After his death, Uchiha Daisuke had taken over the position. Uchiha Daisuke vaguely remembered the man. He'd been praised for his quick wits, but his talents were insufficient. In a world where strength ruled, he'd been lost among the crowd. With that in mind, he replied, "Lord Madara, Uchiha Tai is dead."

Dead? Wasn't that old fox supposed to be good at keeping himself out of harm's way? Madara pressed his lips together, his brow creasing. "When did it happen?"

"The final battle before the village was founded. The clan suffered heavy losses, and many of our people were killed."

Of course a strategist would die if they used him as a soldier! Madara sneered inwardly, but couldn't be bothered to scold them. "I see. What about his descendants?" He remembered that Uchiha Tai's grandson, Xingyi, had good talent. He shouldn't have died young like Uchiha Tai.

Uchiha Takeshi, who was in charge of the clan mission office, replied, "Uchiha Xingyi left on a mission the day before yesterday. He should return in about seven days. He's one of the clan's elite of this generation and awakened the Three-Tomoe at a relatively young age."

Madara nodded. "Tell him to come see me when he gets back."

"If there's anything else to report, submit a proposal."

The elders remained silent.

Madara tapped his finger against the table, his irritation mounting. This world's Uchiha Clan was more like his clan before he'd set it straight, riddled with problems. The elders held the same titles, but their roles and the people filling them were different. They had no rapport at all. There were clever people, but only the petty sort. He'd gone through the clan register: Uchiha Cang and Uchiha Tai were both dead. Uchiha Etsu and Uchiha Zhi, two of the clan's elite, had died on the battlefield one after the other—the timing was so close he wondered if they'd died together out of love. Uchiha Zaitian was old, and he wasn't cut out for strategy. Uchiha Takeshi was doing a decent job managing the clan mission office, so there was no need to replace him. Uchiha Minyue had married and had a child; she now worked in the Family Medical Department. Uchiha Masahiko and Uchiha Yan were still around, but neither was good at politics or socializing.

The only people he could use were from the younger generation.

Besides, he still couldn't fully control this body. He could seize control for less than half a day. He was forced into a deep sleep for the first half of each night, and during the second half, when the original owner's consciousness was at its weakest, he could barely control the body's movements. He wouldn't fully regain consciousness until the following afternoon.

If he couldn't return to his original world... he would find a way to erase the original Uchiha Madara's soul completely!

Madara lowered his eyes, concealing the murderous intent in them.

Night gradually cloaked the land, and lights began to appear across Konoha. The closer they got to the Hokage Building, the more guards and hidden sentries there were. Hashirama carefully avoided the watchers and defenses. He didn't want to make a public spectacle of things.

Inside the office, the First was reviewing documents. The stack to his right had already been approved, while another tall pile on his left still awaited his attention. His pen suddenly stopped. Thorny vines burst through the floor and instantly bound the person who had appeared behind him! Five kunai shot toward their target from five different directions!

The intruder knew Wood Release attacks well. He not only broke free of the vines but also used the Body Flicker Technique to evade the kunai. The First raised a hand and launched another attack, but the other man blocked it with Wood Release.

Wood Release?! The First was stunned. As they struggled, he stared at the man's face—identical to his own, with no trace of a Transformation Technique. How had he done it?! The question burst from his lips. "Who are you?"

Hashirama caught sight of the mountain of paperwork on the desk and suddenly didn't know what to say. Was this what his future life would look like? Why did it seem more exhausting than going on missions...

Seeing that the other man had no intention of attacking, the First withdrew and asked calmly, "Why did you come to Konoha?"

"My reason for coming... will probably be hard to believe."

"If you're telling the truth, I'll judge for myself," the First said. "As long as you're not an enemy of Konoha, I'll do what I can to help." From their brief exchange, he'd realized that the other man's strength was nearly equal to his own. Konoha could never afford to make an enemy of someone that powerful. If they couldn't befriend him, they at least had to avoid antagonizing him.

Hashirama gave a wry smile. "Don't worry. I mean Konoha no harm." He briefly explained what had happened. The First's eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at him.

Senju blood, an identical face, and the ability to use Wood Release. It sounded absurd, but the First had no choice but to believe him. Besides, someone with strength on par with his own had no need to pretend to be someone else.

At that thought, his gaze shifted from scrutiny to curiosity.

...Seeing another version of yourself face-to-face really was a strange feeling...

"So you're the one who broke into the Tailed Beast Altar?" Sure enough, Konoha came first in all things. After recovering from his surprise, the First's first question was about that.

"Who else besides Senju Hashirama could use Wood Release?" Hashirama smiled.

"Uchiha Madara came too?"

Hashirama nodded. He'd concealed the fact that Madara was unconscious. The Senju Hashirama of another world... wasn't entirely himself, after all.

"You're trying to go back, then?"

"Yes. Our arrival in this world may have something to do with the Nine-Tails. So I'm hoping you can open the altar."

The First considered this for a moment. "Not right now. The situation is still too unstable." Because the Land of Fire had monopolized the Nine Tailed Beasts, it was under pressure from all sides. This was the most difficult time for them.

As expected of another version of himself—Hashirama had anticipated this. "That's fine. I'll stay in Konoha for now."

"Is Uchiha Madara here too?" Before the First had finished speaking, both men sensed someone approaching.

Hashirama turned his head and saw Uchiha Madara come through the door.

"Were you talking about me?"